By the numbers

Source: GO-Biz, the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development

Exporting to China

Find a partner: Identify an export management firm with experience in China or a similar Asian market that can more easily navigate technical, logistical, cultural and business hurdles.

Do research: Analyze Chinese market data to identify domestic and foreign competition and to determine viable distribution channels. Also, learn export logistics unique to China, which includes negotiation of letters of credit, freight forwarders, export documentation and export licensing. Information is available at export.gov.

Be prepared to host potential buyers and to travel: Buyers will want to see your product, and you'll want to check on potential distributors' operations. An export management firm can help facilitate these meetings.

Retain a local attorney or consultants: Hire local legal experts to help navigate China's system of international trade regulations and to develop protections for intellectual property.

Source: U.S. Commercial Service, U.S. Dept. of Commerce

MISSION VIEJO – While on vacation in China over the summer, City Councilman Dave Leckness did plenty of sightseeing and visiting with his daughter, who lives there.

At the end of the two-week trip, Leckness visited the U.S. Consulate General in Shanghai and found inspiration.

Everyone at the consulate had the same advice for Leckness to take back to Mission Viejo: If you want to help your city, get small businesses there to start exporting their products to China. It was simple – many Chinese citizens have money to spend, and American businesses have quality goods and services to sell.

Still, the proposition is a big one for small business owners, so Leckness organized a public information session in the fall that brought together export experts with about 70 South County business owners.

AN EMERGING MARKET

While large American corporations have sold their products in China for decades, small and mid-sized businesses are comparatively new to the game.

Countries like China and India are seeing their middle classes grow, and their increased wealth is prompting a desire for products and services from U.S. companies, according to Nick Vyas, director of the Center for Global Supply Chain Management at the USC Marshall School of Business.

“For small and midsize businesses, there’s huge opportunity in emerging markets like Greater China, which includes Hong Kong,” Vyas said. “If you ignore those markets, you’ll miss on tremendous growth.”

According to Vyas, the economic growth trend in China – and the desire for expensive American goods considered to be of higher quality than those produced locally – is expected to continue for the next 15 to 20 years.

THE LONG ROAD TO CHINA

One of those sought-after products is milk. After an estimated 300,000 babies were made sick by tainted baby formula in 2008, the popularity of American milk skyrocketed in Greater China, according to Greg Schneider, executive vice president of Hidden Villa Ranch in Fullerton.

Hidden Villa Ranch has been exporting its ultra-pasteurized milk, sold under the California Sun brand, for more than 25 years, though it’s only been sold in Hong Kong for the past seven years. Ultra-pasteurized milk has a shelf-life of 100 days, so it travels well.

The key, Schneider said, is finding a trustworthy partner overseas that can help navigate the paperwork and bureaucracy.

“You need a partner on that side,” Schneider said. “You can’t do it all from this side. But the person you’re dealing with, you have to make sure they have the proper resources there.”

Michael Snow, whose San Clemente company SnowPure has sold water purification products in China for 10 years, spoke at the Mission Viejo event about the importance of “guanxi.” The word, which describes someone’s personal networks of influence, has no direct English corollary, but Snow said “trust” comes closest.

SnowPure President Michael Snow says his company ships its water purification products to 49 different countries today, including China. MELINA PIZANO, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
SnowPure President Michael Snow, demonstrates analytic capability in the product testing area at SnowPure in San Clemente. The company ships its products around the world, including to China. MELINA PIZANO, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
San Clemente-based SnowPure ships its water purification products around the world, especially to China. MELINA PIZANO, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Hannah Duong, an intern at SnowPure, measures the quality of new technology at SnowPure in San Clemente. SnowPure creates and exports up to 90 percent of their water purification modules to 45 countries. MELINA PIZANO, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Finished electrodeionization (or EDI) modules at SnowPure in San Clemente are ready to be wrapped and shipped around the world. MELINA PIZANO, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Excellion, an ion exchange membrane, goes through a patented extrusion process at SnowPure in San Clemente. MELINA PIZANO, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Excellion, an ion exchange membrane, goes through a patented extrusion process at SnowPure in San Clemente. MELINA PIZANO, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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